Symmetricom 5071A - Page 80

Chapter 4 Remote Operation and Programming
Command Types
52 Operating and Programming Manual
If a command is an implied form but can also accept channel numbers, the
implied form pertains to channel 1 only. To switch channels, you must use the
channel number in the command string. For example:
ROSC:FREQ2 5E6
Parameter Types
Table 4-1 contains explanations and examples of parameter and response types
typically encountered in SCPI programming. These may be numeric, boolean, or
discrete.
Table 4-1. Command Parameter and Response Types
Parameter
Type
Examples and Explanations
Numeric
Accepts all commonly used decimal representations of numbers
with optional signs, decimal points and scientific notation:
123, 123E2, -123, -1.23E2, .123, 1.23E-2, 1.23000E-01
Special cases include MIN and MAX as follows: MIN selects
the minimum value available, and MAX selects the maximum
value available.
Queries on MIN or MAX return the associated value. All
decimal types also accept MIN or MAX and can be queried with
them to produce a numeric value.
Boolean
Represents a single binary condition that is either true or false: 1
or ON, 0 or OFF.
Discrete
Selects from a finite number of choices. These parameters use
mnemonics to represent each valid setting. An example is the
DIAGnostic: LOG:VERBosity<mode> command where mode
can be DISable, TERSe, VERBose, or SERVice
Response Type
Explanations
<boolean>
Represents a single binary condition that is either true or false.
ASCII_string
Represents a series of ASCII characters of arbitrary length.
<NR1>
Represents integer numbers with an implied decimal point.
<NR2>
Represents floating point numbers with an explicit decimal
point.
<NR3>
Represents floating point numbers with an explicit decimal
point and an exponent.